Duke Study Urges Long-Term Federal Infrastructure Investment

Washington’s fragmented approach to transportation investment has cost the U.S. 900,000 jobs, according to a study by Duke University released October 15.

The dearth of federal investment in the nation’s decaying infrastructure has had severe consequences on the country’s economy. In addition to the loss of jobs, more than 97,000 of them in the manufacturing industry alone, the report found:

A backlog of nearly $900 billion in road maintenance and repairs and 156,000 deficient bridges;

A loss of $200 billion per year in economic activity due to inefficient rail transportation;

Global assessment ranking the U.S. 16 out of 144 nations, and sixth among the country’s top 15 global trading partners;

Average annual transportation investment of $848 per person, compared to the European Union’s average investment of $2,589 per person; and

The study concludes that a six-year transportation bill that provides at least $100 billion in annual investment would create over 2.47 million American jobs, have an economic impact of over $404 billion per year, and increase the country’s global competitiveness.